What it really says about you
Have you ever measured your own body fat percentage, or are you planning on doing so? Then it is good to know some things about body fat percentage. Because when talking about body fat, not everything is as self-explanatory as you might think.
How to measure it?
Measuring your body fat% can be done in plenty of different ways. The most common and accessible method nowadays is by buying an electronic scale. Most are equipped with some software that makes it somewhat able to estimate your body fat percentage.
A more traditional manner is by using a skinfold caliper. Here you just measure the amount of fat you have on a specific point on your body with a ruler basically.
There are, however, also a lot of advanced methods, that require precise scans to be executed on your body. One example is Dual-Energy X-ray Absorptiometry (DXA). A lot of bodybuilders have used this over the past few years and have published their results with a YouTube video online.
How accurate is the result?
The accuracy depends a lot on which type of method you are using. The results of the skinfold caliper are mostly dependent on how well the user uses it. It is essential to also get a hold of the lower fats in your body. If you miss those, there is a chance your result is going to look better than it should.
So, the DXA method is the best? Not per se. There has been a video of a bodybuilder called Igor Opeshansky, who showed the outcomes from a lot of bodybuilders and compared it with their looks. The result? It appears that even the DXA scan is not that accurate.
What should I do with the result?
In my opinion, just measuring your body fat percentage once has no added value whatsoever. I think the real value only comes to light when you use the same method over and over, and look at your relative differences. An absolute number of body fat percentage does not say that much, because it can be significantly inaccurate. But the corresponding changes can tell a lot about you and how well your diet treats you.
How can I calculate how long it’s going to take me to lose a certain percentage of fat?
The bodybuilder Igor Opeshansky has an amazing video on YouTube explaining how to calculate your ‘Time To Sixpack’ as he calls it. Check it out. It is really informative about body fat and having a six-pack.
The link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j4zOuCYYCcs&t=323s
So what is the take-home message?
No matter what method you use, you should always rely on your own judgment. And that is done by looking in the mirror. You do not lose weight or gain weight to get to a particular objective number, but probably to look a bit more skinny. Looking skinnier is not measured by such a number, but by just looking at yourself.
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